England slump to their first defeat by Sri Lanka in T20 internationals
England slumped to their first defeat by Sri Lanka in T20 internationals as the visitors levelled the series with an eight-wicket win at Chelmsford.
England collapsed to 104 all out off 18 overs with Sri Lanka’s superb spinners taking eight of the 10 wickets.
Charlie Dean’s 34 was the only score of more than 20 in England’s innings.
Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu then hit an entertaining 55 from 31 balls as her side reached their target with 40 balls to spare.
Athapaththu was dismissed by Alice Capsey with 26 runs still required but Harshitha Madavi and Vishmi Gunaratne calmly completed the chase.
Sri Lanka were understandably jubilant in celebration, Harshitha raising her arms aloft as she sealed the winning runs with a six off Kate Cross.
England opener Danni Wyatt was bowled in the first over to spark a dismal collapse that saw England stutter to 51-6 at the halfway mark, a stark contrast to the 186-4 that they posted in the first T20 at Hove on Thursday.
England made the decision to rest key players for this series after a hectic Ashes summer, with Sophia Dunkley, Nat Sciver-Brunt and Sophie Ecclestone, who has since dislocated her shoulder, rested.
But a relatively inexperienced England side were still heavy favourites to win all three T20s against Sri Lanka, who are significantly behind the hosts in professionalism, finances and depth of talent.
The joy on the Sri Lankans’ faces as they celebrated on the outfield showed exactly how much this historic victory means.
They produced an admirable performance, led by an astonishing fightback with the ball from the thrashing in the series opener, using their main strength in spin bowling.
England’s batters had no answers, with Amy Jones getting trapped on the crease and Capsey, Knight and Maia Bouchier all gifting catches with loose shots – Athapaththu’s sharp turner to bowl Wyatt the only wicket to not feature batter error.
Athapaththu has been Sri Lanka’s star for years, their only batter with franchise experience, but she seems to relish the pressure of leading from the front.
England boast a bowling attack that could defend 104, but she smashed 20 runs from the third over of the chase off Cross, and continued to attack with swagger to ensure the fine bowling performance was not wasted.
England opted to replace 17-year-old Mahika Gaur, who impressed on debut on Thursday, with fellow quick Issy Wong, who burst on to the scene in 2022 as one of the country’s brightest young talents before a dip in form this summer.
Wong did not feature at all in the Ashes and continued to struggle in domestic cricket, finding herself dropped from Birmingham Phoenix’s side in The Hundred because of issues with her run-up.
To use international cricket as a way for a bowler to find form again seemed like a risky move – even against weaker opposition, it is a game in front of a bigger crowd, a bigger TV audience, and with more pressure.
And it did not help Wong, who bowled three front foot no-balls in her first over and was hit for three consecutive fours in her second as Sri Lanka charged to victory.
She was not the only bowler to struggle, with Cross conceding 33 runs from her 2.3 overs and Dean also expensive.
But England have an exciting crop of fast bowlers, including Gaur and Freya Kemp once she is fit again, and it is vital they look after them. (BBC)
